Renders

I have been doing some intense learning and experimenting in Blender lately, and have created some awesome (in my opinion) renders. Rather than explaining all the crap I have learned, or going through a description of each image, I will just be posting groups, and will hopefully have more to add as I continue learning. Some of these will be "entries" for a monthly art challenge I have joined, and I will probably point out which ones, especially if they are outside my normal vibe. So, first off, some renders done in regular old Blender:

The previous flower (Trillium) was modeled for the next image. I have no idea why the close-up flower render had the see-through petals only on the background. WEIRD! Anyway, the next image is my first entry for the month of May's challenge titled "Nature's Rebirth," which is anything to do with the blooming and such of Spring. I titled this "She Brings Spring" and in case the lack of movement confuses anyone, where 'She' walks, snow melts and flowers grow. Like Spring.

For my next tricks, as of Blender 2.53, there is a new render engine built in called Cycles, because it renders in cycles by bouncing light and texture data around the scene in multiple passes. Compared to the Blender internal renderer, there are some completely amazing things possible here! Blender is at version 2.63 right now, and Cycles is still in its infancy. Even so, these images, just experiments, have upped the level of realism for the future!







This next one is may happiest render visually so far. I FINALLY figured out depth of field focus blur! Among other things...

Ya know, there's a few good shots in here, and the family jewels haven't looked any better, but where is the rending? I want to see blood! Gore! Rend, dammit, rend!

Rend and Stimpy? You eedeeot! Don't you know what you have done?!

The jewels do look nice!

In that other forum where I am enjoying the company of professional artists, there is a monthly challenge (did I already cover that?). The challenge for June is 'Reflections' and I was the jackass who thought up that topic. I have been so busy with Manga Studio that I have been putting it off. Two days ago I had an idea, but had no clue how to make it happen. Tonight, I took a break from Manga (the break is now over) and rendered my reflections challenge image. Since we had some blowups and arguments lately due to one person's views of artistic nudity being another person's pornography, I am playing it safe and waiting for Admin to approve of my image before posting it in the gallery. Here, I approve. Thanks to Admin over there reminding me of a few tricks, this is a clickable thumbnail! Oh, I am calling it "Reflections of the past."

Where's the nudity? If the other is complaining about the show of buttocks, that'd be silly as it is within shadow.

My definition of nude vs porn is simple... Playboy, nude art. Hustler, porn. Okay, maybe that's a bad example, but still, it all depends on the layout, the posture, the context of the image.

Nonono. It wasn't my image that was questioned, or rather forcibly removed. Okay, a member had posted an image in the gallery of 2 women on a bed, candles on the floor being the only lighting, and the floor was reflective. One woman was tied to the bed frame, the other was laying on top of her licking her nipple. Nobody said anything negative about the image for almost a week.

Suddenly one of the newer members asked a question about content in another forum, and 2 members took that as he was trying to censor speech, and Americans won't stand for that. It became a political...well...shouting match. Then, in the middle of that, one of the Americans says how she hates to say it, but since everyone is speaking their minds, the image by member-X is pornographic and offensive. The member removed it immediately, but the removal then started another 2 pages of members arguing over what is porn, what is artistic nudity, and what rights do we have to censor any of it.

It was all very stupid. So to protect the forum from more stupid, I chose to await permissions, which were granted... allowing my piece to get some "very emotional scene" compliments.

Ahh... then that (the picture you are referencing) would be more akin to erotic art versus pornography.

You know, erotic art. The difference between Heavy Metal and those cartoons at the end of Penthouse. Both have adult themes... err, both have PG to R ratings, and both deal in nudity and sexual content, but one handles it in a more mature light than the other. There ya go! Pornography is developed to gain arousal on the viewer, whereas erotic art does not intend for that to happen!

Going back to Playboy and Hustler, a person can look at both and get excited... likewise, a person could look at it and not be. But the intent is there.

As an other example, I know of MANY classic Renaissance paintings depicting women bathing nude together, or pinching nipples, or in various states of undress with other women (lesbians... mmm), but it isn't viewed as porn, but art. BUT, I will bet you that, if we were to photograph women in those same poses, we'd be labeled as pornographers.

I hate to quote that one senator when he said "I don't know what pornography is, but I know it when I see it," but that's the truth of things, isn't it? One person will look at something and call it beautiful, but an other would call it disgusting. People are simple minded, unwilling to view things in a different perspective!

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Yep, it has to be intent. Only thing that makes sense. If the artist of the picture that was removed intended it to be arousing, then yes, remove it. Otherwise, the complainer should just shut up.

Now, sorry for derailing your thread here...

That's what threads are for! Communication! Well...and for holding cloth together. And open wounds.

PS- I would respond to your take on porn/art/nudity but it's a little past bed time, so all I had was the list of threadly uses. Maybe tomorrow the discussion can continue!

Has it really been so long since I posted a render in this joke of a forum? I didn't even post my November challenge fuzzy thing in the fridge! Anywho, since I don't know where that is right now... January challenge is Winter, so I made a snowflake out of Makehuman people and stuck it on a fingertip that had serious issues wanting to accept a fingerprint texture. Rendered in cycles, then took into GIMP to add one hit from a starburst light brush on the snowflake to fake some shine. Yes, I post-processed in GIMP... like photoshopping it.... but with all the people models and rendering in cycles, this image was about to crash my crap. Also why I failed to turn my snowflake into falling snow particles between the finger and the background.... so we have one lonely snowflake on a mostly sunny day. It happens, so shut it!